The Evil Genius: A Domestic Story — page 220: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE EVIL GENIUS. 209 you used to amuse your father and me. When she caught you searching my pockets for sweetmeats, she accused me of destroy- ing your digestion before you were five years old. I went on spoiling it for all that. The last time I saw you, my child, your father was singing ‘ The Mariners of England,’ and you were on his knee trying to sing with him. You must have often won- dered why you never saw anything more ofme. Did you think I had forgotten you?” ‘‘T am quite sure I never thought that.” ‘“You see, I was in the navy at the time,” the captain re- sumed, ‘‘and we were ordered away to a foreign station. When I got back to England miserable news was waiting for me. I heard of your father’s death, and of that shameful trial. Poor fellow! He was as innocent, Sydney, as you are of the offense which he was accused of committing. The first thing I did was to set inquiries on foot after your mother and her children. It was some consolation to me to feel that I was rich enough to make your lives easy and agreeable to you. I thought money could doanything. A serious mistake, my dear; money couldn't find the widow and her children. We supposed you were some- where in London; and there, to my great grief, it ended. From time to time—long afterward, when we thought we had got the clew in our hands—I continued my inquiries, still without suc- cess. A poor woman and her little family are so easily ingulfed in the big city. Years passed (more of them than I like to reckon up) before I heard of you at last by name. The person from whom I got my information told me how you were em- loyed, and where.” ‘*Oh, Captain Bennydeck, who could the person have been ?” ‘*A poor, old, broken-down actor, Sydney. You were his favorite pupil. Do you remember him?” ‘‘T should be ungrateful indeed if I could forget him. Hewas the only person in the school who was kind to me. Is the good old man still living ?” ‘No; he rests at last. Iam glad to say I was able to make his last days on earth the happiest days of his life.” ‘*T wonder,” Sydney confessed, ‘‘ how you met with him.” ‘*There was nothing at all romantic in my first discovery of him. I wa3 reading the police reports in a newspaper. The oor wretch was brought before a magistrate, charged with reaking a window. His one last chance of escaping starvation in the streets was to get sent to prison. The magistrate ques- tioned him, and brought to light a really heart-breaking account of misfortune, imbittered by neglect on the part of people in authority who were bound to help bim. He was remanded, so that inquiries might be made. I attended the court on the day when he appeared there again, and heard his statement con- firmed. I paid his fine, and contrived to put him in a way of earning a little money, He was very grateful, and came now and then to thank me. In that way I heard how nis troubles had begun. He had asked for a small advance on the wretched wages that he received. Can you guess how the schoolmistress answered him ?” ECOMMICLO® S (C©) m